


Dungeons and Arcana

by AshleysMystery



Category: The Arcana (Visual Novel)
Genre: Alcohol, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, DnD AU, Dungeons and Dragons AU, Friend OCs, Gen, Out of Character, Swearing, cause its an au where things are different, they play dnd
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-01-30
Updated: 2019-06-11
Packaged: 2019-10-19 04:56:35
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 12,127
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17595038
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AshleysMystery/pseuds/AshleysMystery
Summary: What if the Arcana was actually a dnd session? What if Lucio was the DM? What if he was also bad at making characters and just used the people around him as inspirations? This, you get this. Apparently.





	1. New Game

Lucio rubbed his face, trying hard not to glare at the others at the table with him. “Explain to me again, what is it you want to do?”

Asra smiles, setting down his glass. “We want to bring two more people into the game with us.”

“I got that. Who are they, do I know them, what are their experience, and do I need to start a new campaign?” He hated getting new players. Not that he wants to keep others from playing, but it meant having to learn them, figure out how they play characters, see what they could and couldn’t deal with, merging them into pre-existing campaigns was a bitch. 

Julian raises his hand a bit. “My sister, she’s got a bit of experience from playing with me.”

Lucio nods, then looks at the other two.

“Our roommate, Muriel. You’ve probably met him before, or well, at least seen him.” Mordenkainen answered, making vaguely descriptive hand gestures. “Tall guy, beefy, wears a hoodie all the time, and has the big service dog. Ring any bells?”

It did, mostly because the guy was like a huge brick wall, but he wasn’t very social, so Lucio didn’t know him very well. “Does he have any experience?”

Asra and Mordenkainen look between each other with small looks of worry. “... We’ve tried…” “But neither of us are good dms so….” “Not really….”

“Jesus christ.” He groans, rubbing his face and pushing his glasses further up his face. “...... I’m going to have to meet them both, then we’ll see about a new campaign. Nadia!” He looked over his shoulder towards the kitchen.

“What?” Nadia yells back.

“You’re going to need to make a new character!”

“Okay! What kind of campaign?”

“Not sure yet! Probably just a self inserts and fantasy!”

“Hella!”

Lucio rolls his eyes then turns back to the three in front of him. “Same time or do we need to reschedule for the others?”

“Muriel is good with us.” Asra smiles brightly, lightly jumping in his seat.

Julian thinks for a bit, then pulls his cell out of his scrubs pocket. “... I’ll have to check in with her for that, but let’s stick with the same time for now.”

Lucio nods, ideas of what to make the campaign starting to form. “Good, good, please get them in contact with me before then please. I need to meet them first, even if it’s over webcam.”

Nadia came out of the kitchen, holding a bowl of grapes and milk shake. “So we’ve got more people coming?”

“Maybe.”

“Yes.” Rang in everyone else.

She nods, thoughtfully sipping at her shake. “We’ll have to order more food then. Do any of them have allergies?”

“Portia does, but I doubt that’ll stop her from eating what’s presented.” 

“Still, best to make preparations anyways. What’s she allergic to?”

“Dairy, but she doesn’t acknowledge that fact.”

“Oh.” She makes a face. “Is…. is there a non-dairy pizza? Hmm, I’ll keep an eye out for non-dairy snacks that taste good.”

Julian sighs with relief. “Thank you. I can try to get her to send a list of snacks she likes, if that’d help?”

Nadia and Julian start to discuss food, while Lucio turns to the other two. “So, I know of Muriel, but what’s he like? Asides from being a big boy.”

“Shy, not outgoing, and suffers from anxiety.” Asra says, ruffling his brown hair. “We figured that doing it with friends would be the best chance at having him play and plus you’re pretty good, so we figured you’d be best at being one of his first dms.”

Lucio sighs in defeat. “We’ll talk more about this later.” He glances at the clock, then groans. “After work, it’s time to go.” He and Asra stand up, grabbing their bags and coats. “Bye Noddy!”

“Bye Mayor!” Asra grins, sliding on his obnoxiously colored green, pink, and orange jacket.

“Not mayor yet.” She laughs, waving them farewell. “Don’t forget your arm charger!”

“Thank you!” Lucio quickly grabs it from the counter, then goes out to the car. “What do you plan on playing tonight?”

Asra buckles himself, as he makes his signature cat face. “What do you mean?”

Lucio narrowed his eyes at him as he buckled himself in and pulled out. “Do you plan on being a memey little shit with the music tonight or do you plan on doing normal bar music?”

“Oh, you know.” He grins, giving Lucio the answer he knew. The bar was going to be filled with meme songs, most of them were going to give him a headache. 

“You little shit.” He groaned, already feeling the headache forming from just thinking of what he was going to hear for the hours they were working together. “Can you at least put on good meme music?”

“Excuse you, but Smash Mouth is great music.” He laughs, watching the buildings pass by.

“No, no it’s not. And please, for the love of god, don’t play What’s New Pussycat, because I swear, I will jump over the bar and strangle you for it.”

“Kinky.” He snickers, poking at his shoulder.

“It’s not a kink thing you perverted little shit!” He groans, keeping his eyes on the road as he blindly slaps at Asra.

Asra snorts, weakly batting his hand away. “What if I play, It’s Not Unusual?”

“That’s worse!” He groans, putting his hand back on the wheel. “Just… Please, take some of the patrons’ requests.”

“I’ll consider it.”

It was quiet for the next few minutes, but as Lucio finished parking, his speakers came to life with-

“DO YOU LIKE WAFFLES?”

“ASRAAAAAA!”

The culprit ran into the bar, laughing with bastardly delight. Lucio groaned, rubbing his face as he turned off the car, and grabbed his bag. He hoped today will be slow, so he could write, but since Asra took over the music selection, more people started coming in. It was good for business, but not good for his creativity. He went inside, clocked himself in, and went to his usual part of the bar, the one with the plug-in built into the counter. He plugged in his phone and arm, hoping people chose the other bartenders, but knowing he’s never that lucky.

His fear was confirmed about 10 minutes into his shift. Asra had some weird remix playing as a sickly looking older man came to the bar in front of him. Worm man, or Vlastomil, as his name tag reads, comes in regularly. The only reason Lucio even remembers this fucker is solely because he stands out; super pale, an almost leprechaun face, dark clothes, and is usually saying something about worms. He assumes the man works at the bait shop, but honestly didn't care enough to find out. “What will it be, sir?”

“Drunken worm cocktail.”

He gets out the ingredients, passion fruit vodka, peach schnapps, cointreu, coconut rum, sweet and sour, cranberry juice, and gummy worms. It looked tasty, white bottom, with red top, ice, and gummy worms resting on the top. “Here you go.”

“Thank you.” He sets down $15 and walks away to a darker part of the room. A weird, but alright person.

He stares at him for a bit, then picks up his phone and starts typing. _Vlastomil…. Sounds like a perfect fantasy name…._ He quickly made some notes, then put away his phone as another person came over. “Hi, how can I help you?”

The man in front of him was beautiful, like almost a model. Long hair in a braid, brown that somehow beautifully turns to blond, and clothes that looked a bit more expensive than this area normally gets. Dammit, he didn’t need an instant crush on a stranger. “What kinds of wine do you have?”

“... Uh, I’ll have to check the list.” Not many people wanted straight wine, so he forgot the actual names of them. “We have…. Pinot Grigio.. Some Chardonnay… uhhh.. Pinot Noir… Rose and Cabernet Sauvignon?”

He raises an eyebrow and has a small smile. “Not used to serving?”

“Not used to serving straight wine. Which would you like?”

He stares at the bottles for a bit. “Pinot Noir.”

“You got it.” He pours him a glass and hands it to him, then watches as he awkwardly holds the glass, probably expecting a wine glass instead of the regular ass glasses they have.

“Thank you.” He continues to stay at the bar, drinking as he looked around, sipping thoughtfully at his wine. “Hmp, this is just like him too.”

He shouldn’t butt in or even mention that he heard it, but his nosiness is getting the better of him. “Who?”

He sighs, leaning back into the bar. “My ex, he used to bring this home constantly. Should have expected the bad after taste of him with it.”

“That’s rough buddy.” Did he really just say that? He’s been dming too long, now he sounds like an actual NPC!

He snorts softly, turning to smile at him. “I didn’t think bartenders actually said that.”

They don’t, I’m just too used to fantasy. “I like going beyond people’s expectations.”

“I’ll keep that in mind.” He turns back around, continuing to sip at his wine.

Lucio looked over at Asra, only to see him gesturing to…. Do something? He looked at his phone and, oh, he sent a text.

**Snek meme bastard: is that valerius?  
** **Me: Who is that and why should I care?  
** **Snek meme bastard: cuz hes muriels cuz  
** **Me: …..  
** **Me: Can u try that again with proper spelling?  
** **Snek meme bastard: valerius is muriels cousin  
** **Snek meme bastard: is that valerius?  
** **Me: not sure  
** **Snek meme bastard: ASK  
** **Me: NO  
** **Snek meme bastard: please  
** **Me: no  
** **Snek meme bastard: please  
** **Me: no  
** **Snek meme bastard: please  
** **Me: no  
** **Snek meme bastard: please  
** **Me: no  
** **Snek meme bastard: please  
** **Me: no  
** **Snek meme bastard: please**  
**Me: no**  
**Snek meme bastard: ……….**  
**Snek meme bastard: ill give you $20 bucks if you do**  
**Me: …… if he calls the cops im bringing you to jail with me**

He groans, rubbing the bridge of his nose, then looks back up at the handsome man in front of him. “What’s your name?”

He looks up at him. “.... any reason you want to know?”

Shit, shit, what does he say? “Why wouldn’t I like to know the name of an attractive person at my bar?” He grins, dying on the inside. He really needs to stop hanging out with MC, they were giving him bad habits of unnecessary flirting with everyone who sticks around for more than 5 minutes.

He looks at him for a bit, then laughs. “You…” He snorts, setting down his drink. “Where.. How did you learn to talk like that?”

“I have no idea of what you mean.” Well, at least he got the stranger to laugh, hopefully that means good things and not being considered a creep. “I speak like a regular people.”

He laughs more, then tries to take a sip of his wine. “I’ll…” He snickers. “I’ll tell you mine, if you tell me your’s.”

“I’m Lucio of Vesuvia!” He adds a bit of lordly flair to the way he says it, deciding to commit to the weird way of talking for this man. “And you are?”

He giggles, barely able to talk at this point. “I’m- hehehe- I’m Consul Valerius, at your service!” He goes back to laughing.

His phone lights up, warning him that Asra wanted to call. Fuck that, it’s too loud for that to work out. He declines the call to see that Asra had texted him. A lot.

**Snek meme bastard: is it him?  
** **Snek meme bastard: hey  
** **Snek meme bastard: lucio  
** **Snek meme bastard: lucio  
** **Snek meme bastard: is it him?  
** **Snek meme bastard: LUCIO  
** **Snek meme bastard: lucy  
** **Snek meme bastard: i said get a name not flirt  
** **Snek meme bastard: ……  
** **Snek meme bastard: bitch  
** **Snek meme bastard: dude  
** **Snek meme bastard: respond or i will rick roll the entire club  
** **Snek meme bastard: im serious  
** **Snek meme bastard: just say if he is or isnt  
**Snek meme bastard: 3  
**Snek meme bastard: 2  
**Snek meme bastard: 1  
**Me: WAIT**********

********** **

****

But it was too late, the room was filling with the beginning of Never Going to Give You Up, sending almost every person in the bar into a collective flight or fight response. Some were booing Asra, others just loudly complaining, some were laughing, and even fewer actually left. Asra stared directly at Lucio, demanding a response.

**Me: YES HIS NAME IS VALERIUS  
** **Me: TURN IT OFF  
**Snek meme bastard: :3****

********

********

The music was changed to.. Something else, the song wasn’t familiar, so that was good. He sighs, rubbing his face. “Sorry about that. Our DJ is a…. He’s a bastard and let’s leave it at that…”

He shrugs, finishing his glass of wine. “It’s alright, odd choices in music, but he seems alright.”

After the song, one of the other DJs took over for a bit, then Asra made, as straight as he could, for them. “Valerius?”

“Who wants to know.” His mood immediately dropped back to being serious.

“Muriel’s roommate, Asra.”

He glances at Lucio, as if to get confirmation.

“This is my bastard coworker, Asra, the memelord.” Lucio sighs, gesturing at him.

Asra grins, then starts talking to Valerius, but Lucio stopped listening so that he could make some more notes. _Vesuvia and Valerius… wonderful names.._

“Excuse me!” A loud person, yelled at Lucio. He looked up to see Vulgora, one of the few people you actually remembered the name of. They were constantly getting into fights and just overall loud. “Get me a beer!” 

“Any specific kind?”

“A beer!”

Lucio nodded, getting the cheapest beer he could find and putting it in a glass, then handing it to them. “Here you go.” Vulgora and the bar had a deal, they could drink as much as they wanted and the bill would be put directly on their bank account. The bill on most days was too many drinks, on worst days, over hundreds of dollars for repairs. He didn’t understand why they were let back in after the first time, but at least they were paying for it.

With their drink in hand, Vulgora started chugging as they went to find someone to arm wrestle, and Lucio went back to his phone. _Vulgora… that’s a rather unique name…_

There was tapping on the counter, he looked up to see one of his greatest fears: Dr. Valdemar. The doctor might not have done anything specifically harmful to him, but waking up in the middle of surgery was still lucid led to….. Visual nightmares that have haunted him for over 6 years. “..... How can I help you?”

“Have you seen Dearil?”

“Uhh.. no?” Name sounded familiar, but he couldn’t place who it was.

They look around, contemplating their next words. “Dark orange hair, reddish brown eyes, and is probably carrying a skull?”

No, no he has not. Well, maybe, there’s a lot of people here. He shrugs. “Can’t help you, sorry.”

They nod, setting down a bill. “Thanks anyways.” They wandered into the crowd, hopefully to never be seen again.

_…. They would make a great villain._ He typed some more at his phone. He was getting a lot of V names tonight.

“Um, sir?” There was a lady in front of him. “Do you serve food here?”

“The bar with food is over there.” He points to the other side.

“Thank you.” She smiles, walking away and someone said “Volta!” as she approached.

_This place has a surprising amount of people with Vs in their first name…_ He went back to his phone, waiting on Asra to stop talking to the cute guy.


	2. Character Building

Muriel stared at the screen, idly petting Scout as he tried to see if there was any jobs in town. So far, most of them were for jobs he didn’t qualify for or gave him too much anxiety for him to consider. “..... ugh. That’s enough for today.” He closed the laptop and set it aside. After a few seconds of not staring at a screen, he got up and set Scout down. Time for chores. There wasn’t much to do, the apartment was small, but they needed to get it done. Feed and water the dogs and Faust, make sure Scout didn’t try to eat Inanna’s food, make the bed, put clothes in the basket for later, put the dishes on the counter to be washed later, make sure the dogs didn’t shit or piss in the house, take the trash out, and finally, walk the dogs.

As he walked, he hoped that they’d be getting a new home soon. It was cramped living in the apartment with two other people, a snake, and two dogs, but it’s what they could afford. His mind drifted off as he thought about the kind of house they all wanted: out of town, a big backyard, good insulation, and big enough so that they could each have their own room. It wasn’t going to be cheap, but it would be so worth it.

He was about to turn back when Scout stopped and stared at a person, the boofed, grabbing the person’s attention away from their phone. “Hey, Scout, no.” They looked up at him, small tail wagging. “No boofing at strangers.”

He looked up to find the stranger walking up to him with a smile. “Hi, awkward question, can you help me find a place?”

“Um….” Inanna gently nudges his thigh. “Y… yeah. Where are you looking for?”

“Do you know a place called the Rowdy Raven? My brother wants me to meet him there, but the map doesn’t think it exists.” They hold up their phone, trying to prove their point.

“.......” He taps their phone, putting in the address. “This map isn’t up-to-date… There.”

“Thank you!” They grin, bouncing in place, then turning and holding out their hand to him. “I’m Portia, she/her.”

That was the first time someone introduces themself like that, he like it. “Muriel, he/him.”

“Well, it was nice to meet you, and hopefully, we’ll meet again!” She runs off, red hair flowing after her.

Scout snapped him back to reality by barking and tugging on the leash, pointed towards the apartment. He smiles softly, following the terrier hom. When he opened the door, he was hit with the smell of lemons and strawberries. He lets the dogs off their leashes and wanders to the kitchen, finding Mordenkainen watching a pan in the oven. “Hey M.C.”

They look up and smile. “Hey, Muriel! How was your walk?”

“It was alright, someone asked for directions though.” He looked around the room and groaned. “Mordy.” The kitchen was a mess, cabinets and drawers were open, dirty dishes and ingredients were left out. “You can’t keep doing this.”

They look up with an expression that was hard to describe, but gave off the feeling of ‘I know I’m being a brat, but am trying to look as non-guilty as possible’. “Doing what?”

He gestures at the rest of the kitchen. “This aries mess! You know to clean up.”

“I don’t know what you mean.” They squat in front of the oven, as if that would hide their deeds.

“I’m a virgo, you can’t leave messes like this!” He groans, torn between laughing and mortification.

They wiggle a bit in place, smiling. Then a timer goes off and they pull out a cake, lemon with strawberry. Scout comes running into the room, boofing softly and watching the cake. “Not for you, it’s not for you.” They baby voice their dog, setting the pan on the oven. They run a sink full of water and soap, then wander around the kitchen for dishes to clean.

“Thank you.” He sighs, closing cupboards and drawers, then wiping off the counters. “Why did you make a cake?”

“Can’t I ever just make a cake?” They pouted, then nod. “It’s for Julian’s sister and the group, she had a birthday recently and I figured it would be a good excuse for a cake. That reminds me, Lucio agreed to let you join the group.”

He stops wiping the table. “Oh……” He was nervous, he knew there wasn’t that much to be worried about, but groups of people still made him nervous.

They stop and look at him. “We.. we can cancel plans with him, if you really don’t want to.”

He shook his head, he wanted to, but that didn’t stop the worry in his thoughts. “I… What do I need to do?”

They smile and sit at the table and urge him to sit as well. “Well, you don’t need to bring much, just a character sheet. Asra and I can get the other items, like dice and some snacks.” They tilt their head at the cooling cake. “Would you like help with a character creation?”

He thinks for a bit, then nods. “Please.. I don’t even know where to start.”

They leave the room, then return with a laptop. “He said to do a self insert, so you don’t have to really worry about choosing a personality or basic looks, other than your own. We basically just need to select a class, choose some equipment, and then wait for Lucio to give us information on the world so that we can make you a background. Also, at some point we need you to get in contact with him.”

He nods, looking at the sheet they pulled up. “Okay, okay.”

Within a few hours, they’ve managed to do the basics and have them explain some of the finer details. “Remember, if you get confused, just ask one of us, okay?”

“Okay…… You said that… Lucy? Wanted to talk to me?”

“Yes, Lucio, would like to talk to you. Would you like his number or to meet him in person? His discord maybe?”

“....... Discord might be best for now.” They give him Lucio’s discord, then leave him at the table to frost the cake. “What kind of cake did you make?”

“Lemon with strawberry pieces.” They grin, setting the frosted cake into the fridge. “I think Portia will like it.”

Portia.. Could they mean….? “What does Portia look like?”

“Not sure. Julian said that she was him, but shorter and brighter.” They sat down with him again. “He said that most of us will probably get along with her. Why?”

He shrugs. “Met someone who said her name was Portia earlier.”

They grin, leaning closer. “Ooooooo~ You met someone.”

He blushed a bit, pushing their face back. “It’s not like that. She asked for directions, then ran off.”

They laughed, patting his hand. “You met someone, and if it’s the same Portia that Julian speaks of, you’ll see her Saturday.”

He slowly takes his hand away. “Okay…. Can.. can you sit with me while I contact Lu… Lucio?”

“Sure thing, dude.”

He smiles, whistling Inanna to come over, he pet her for a bit, then sent a message to him.

**Muriel: This is Lucio?**  
**glamorousCapricious: That depends, who’s asking?**  
**Muriel: Muriel**  
**glamorousCapricious: arsa’s friend?**  
**Muriel: yes**  
**glamorousCapricious: can you give me a few minutes? Busy at work with a drunk**  
**Muriel: ok**

He sits back and sighs, he wasn’t sure if waiting was worse, but that’s all he could do. “.... go get some rest, M.C.”

They shrug, trying not to yawn. “Not that tired.”

“Maybe not, but I know you have work tomorrow. Go to bed.” He lightly pushes at their shoulder, urging them to bed.

“Fiiiiiine.” They yawn and get up, gently patting his shoulder. “Don’t stay up too late yourself, okay?”

“Okay, good night.”

“Niiiiight!” They wander to the bathroom, probably to shower.

He hears the notification on his phone and pulls it up. It’s from Asra.

**Asra: guess who i found at work!**  
**Me: Julian**  
**Asra: no**  
**Asra: well, yes, but hes not the focus!**

Asra sent him a selfie of himself, Lucio, and a vaguely familiar person.

**Asra: found your cuz!**  
**Asra: did you know he was coming today?**  
**Me: I thought he was coming tomorrow**

_Shit, shit, shit!_ He got out of the seat and started trying to clean up the living room and extending out the bed from the couch.

**Asra: apparently he had to cancel plans due to his break up and just came early  
**Asra: is it alright that he comes to our house a night early?****

_No!_

******Me: yeah  
** **Asra: ill let him know!  
**Asra: he says hi and thanks!****

The shower stops, so he takes his chance. “Mordy! Where did we put the extra blankets?”

“Uhhhhhhh! I think they’re under the bed!”

He runs into the bedroom and looks under the bed, immediately followed by Scout. There was a plastic container filled with blankets. Scout crawled under and batted at the box. “Yes, good puppy.” He struggles to get it, but is eventually able to have the blankets. He picks out some of the warmer blankets and gets them onto the couch. “Pillows, pillows..” Those were easier to find, scattered all over the house. He found a few different ones, not sure what his cousin prefered. “.......... this should be good enough.”

******Me: tell him I said hi  
** **Me: when is he and you coming over?  
**Asra: after my shift or til he gets bored of this place, so in a few hours or less****

That’s not comforting.

******Me: ok  
** **Asra: i gotta go back to the music, ttyl!  
**Me: bye****

He was about to put his phone away when he got a text from an unknown number texted him.

******Unknown: This is Muriel, right?  
** **Me: who are you  
** ******Unknown: Lucio  
** **Me: how did you get my phone number?  
**Unknown: Arsa. he gave it to me, probably didn’t know that someone else gave you my discord****

Yeah, that sounds about right. He saves Lucio’s number.

**Me: then why are you texting me?  
** **Lucio: texting is faster in here than discord  
** **Me: oh  
** **Lucio: can I ask you some questions for the game?  
** **Me: sure  
** **Lucio: do you have a character sheet and a general sense of a backstory?  
** **Me: yes, do you want a picture of it?  
**Lucio: that would be perfect****

He sends him a copy and a small blurb of the background he’d come up with.

 

******Lucio: interesting  
** **Lucio: are you open to suggestions? Some details might work better in the world i’m trying to create  
** **Me: what changes?  
** **Lucio: instead of living on a mountain, would you be open to the middle of the woods?  
** **Me: yes, that works  
** **Lucio: also, what would you/your character ask for as a super power from a magical entity?  
** **Me: …….. Im not sure  
** **Lucio: i see..  
** **Lucio: you wanted them to be an ex gladiator?  
** **Me: yes  
** **Lucio: do you desire an active part in the campaign or would you like a more passive role for now?  
** **Me: passive would be best for now  
** **Lucio: did they have a gladiator name and did the crowd like them?  
** **Lucio: or do you want me to decide that?  
**Me: don’t have a name, but i think he was hated**   
**

It takes a while, but he does respond back.

****Lucio: How does Scourge of the South sound?  
**Me: sounds good** ** **

The rest of the conversation was determining some of the finer details, like his relation to some of the other characters, a bit more backstory, that he could bring Inanna to the game, and that he was now an accomplice for Lucio to move the plot forward for the others. In his words, ‘The others sometime go on a streak of not doing things and results in them not doing anything, but wanting more to do of what he didn’t plan for.’ He snorts. _That sounds like M.C. and Asra._

Maybe this game wouldn’t be so bad.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Let me know if there's any character in particular that you'd like a pov of


	3. The Tavern

Julian sets his glasses on the table and rubs the bridge of his nose. It had been a long day and he was more than willing to go to bed, but he needed to be here. Past him thought it would be best to bring her to the Rowdy Raven, so that Lucio could meet her, then they could talk while he drinks, then go home and fall asleep. Past Julian didn’t consider that he’d have to cover a co-worker’s shift and have 2 kids throw up on him in the span of an hour before having to sit in a crowded bar with loud music. He looks up at Asra, tempted to text him and tell him to play something quieter, but didn’t want to put on his glasses.

 

There was motion at the seat next to him and he turned to see a familiar mess of red hair. “Hello, sir, can you help me find my brother? He’s a tall stick with nerd ass glasses.”

 

“Ha. Ha. Ha. I forgot how to laugh.” He grins, putting his glasses back on to see Portia properly. “How’ve you been?”

 

“Could’ve been better.” She shrugs. “Could’ve had actual instructions on how to get here instead of just a name.”

 

“I didn’t?” He pulls out his phone and looked at his messages for her and _…. Oh… Oh._ Right in front of him sat the instructions on how to get here, saved as a draft and unsent. “Sorry ‘bout that.” His cheeks flushed in embarrassment.

 

She shrugs, leaning against the table. “It’s cool, met a guy who helped me find this place, so it’s all good.”

 

He nods, then waves Lucio over.

 

“What?”

 

“Pasha, this is Lucio. Montag, this is Portia.” He grinned as both of them glared at him.

 

“Really? Really, Ilya?” She frowned at him.

 

“Already introducing me with my old name?” Lucio crossing his arms.

 

He grins, leaning slightly away from both of them. “What? Having a _small_ case of the _Mondays_?”

 

“Julian!” They both yell at him as he laughs.

 

Portia slugs him, face scrunched as she’s torn between laughing and yelling at him. “So dumb!”

 

“I don’t get paid enough for this.” Lucio groans, rubbing his face. “Do you want a drink or not?”

 

“Yes, I’ll take a Hot White Russian and she’ll have…” He looks to Portia for her order.

 

She gives him an unimpressed look, then turns to Lucio. “A Guinness beer, for now.” When he leaves, she turns to him, continuing the look. “‘Hot White Russian’?”

 

He grins. “It’s coffee with Kahlúa and Vodka.”

 

“..... You choose it because of its name, didn’t you?”

 

He grins wider. “It would be a lie to say I didn’t.”

 

“Oh my god, Ilya!”

 

They laugh, making some small talk and jabs as they waited for their drinks. They talked all about whatever came to mind; people, jobs, animals, their mothers, friends, and weird stuff that has happened to them.

 

“Holy shit, you can’t be serious. Thirteen crit roles? In one session?!” She howls with laughter, face red from all the laughing.

 

“Yes, it did! My dice are cursed and Lucio won’t let me borrow his!” His own face red from both, embarrassment and laughter.

 

Lucio snorts, setting down their drinks. “I don’t want you cursing my dice too. It’s bad enough that you get shitty rolls, I, the dm, don’t want to make the campaign too easy for y’all.”

 

“Boooooooooo! Thank you.” He grinned, giving his card to Lucio as he takes his drink and starts drinking it. Maybe he should request it without the cream next. “Oh! Before I forget, Portia, this is Lucio the DM. Lucio, this is the sister who plans on joining us.”

 

“I’m sorry that you’re related to him.” Lucio gets mock serious.

 

“Hey.” Julian pouts.

 

“Thank you, I’ve made my peace with it.”

 

“Heeeey!”

 

They both giggle at him, then start to talk about the game, but that was about when Julian started to tune out and drink more. Despite his energetic talk with Portia, he was still very tired and wanted to go to bed. Hmmm, maybe he could- no. He can’t leave her here and expect someone else to take her home. That’s a horrible idea on many levels. Hmmmmmmmmmm.

 

He was snapped out of his thoughts by a notification. He glanced at the other two, they were busy talking, so he decided to look. Ah, it appears that another person has decided to support his.. Blog. He smiles softly, then puts his phone away. He can examine that better when he wasn’t about to pass out.

 

“Got a girlfriend?”

 

He yelps, spinning around to face- oh, it’s just Asra and his shit eating grin. “Asra, you sneaky fox! What are you doing?”

 

He sits by him, poking his pocket with the phone. “You smiled at it. Find a boyfriend?”

 

This again. “No, I don’t have a date partner.”

 

“Family?”

 

He points to Portia, who is _still_ talking to Lucio. “Sister already arrived.”

 

“Cute animal video?”

 

“No.” Why didn’t he just say yes to that? Asra would have accepted that answer or asked to watch it.

 

Asra pouts, not happy that he hasn’t figured it out yet, and scooted the chair closer. “A fic update?”

 

“No.” He chuckles softly, his younger friend was still being cute while being a nosey brat. “Lucio! Can I get another drink?”

 

Lucio stopped talking to his sister for now, looking disappointed about being interrupted, but willing to stop talking about the game for money. “Yeah, yeah.” He takes his glass and walks away.

 

_Shit, he forgot to ask for no cream this time. Oh well._

 

“Who’s this?” Portia was now leaning between him and the table. “Is this your s/o?”

 

Julian blushed, pushing her face away. “Pasha, that’s Asra. Asra, this is my brat of a sister, Portia.”

 

Portia laughed, sticking her hand out for Asra and talking despite her brother’s hand still firmly in her face. “Nice to meet you, ‘probably dating my brother’ Asra.”

 

Asra laughs, shaking her hand. “Hello, ‘fellow brat’ Portia.”

 

Julian rolls his eyes, taking his hand off her face and leaning back, letting himself be third-wheeled again so that neither of them would question his phone for a while. He pulls out his phone again, there was another notification. He put it away. He watches them for a while longer, then decided to get back into their conversation.

 

“- and then his character tried to seduce the dragon!” Asra laughs.

 

“Oh my god, that’s so Julian!” She laughs and snorts.

 

He looked between them, suddenly wishing to back out of the conversation, but Lucio was back with his drink. “Thank you.”

 

Lucio nods, then joins the other two in their nerd conversations.

 

He hopes that they get done soon, he wants to go to bed. Maybe he can convince Portia to drive. He sips his drink as he tries to keep his eyes open. _This was a horrible idea._ He should try to remember to ask without the cream next time. _Coffee sounds great._ There’s a guy sitting by Asra. _Why were seats without backs invented?_ Wait, who is that guy?

 

He snaps back to reality enough to focus on the guy. “..... Hi.”

 

“Hello. Are you a doctor?”  


He gives him a look. “No… Why?”

 

“The scrubs.”

 

Scrubs? What scrubs? He looks down and sees that he’s sit wearing his replacement scrubs. “Oh. No. I’m just a nurse. You know? The one you see before the doctor.”

 

The guy smirks and chuckles. “Tired?”

 

Julian nods, rubbing his face. He needs to piss. “I’m going to piss.” He gets up, ignoring everyone’s remarks, and heading straight to where he thinks the bathroom is. He walks into the room to discover that for once in his tired life, he was correct. Ow. The light was too bright in here. He was about to do his business when he bumped into a very nice looking blond. “M’sorry.” This guy’s eyes were a really pretty brown.

 

“It’s fine.” The guy backed up, face getting red and readjusting his clothes. “It’s fine. Bye.” He walks around him and out the door.

 

“.... Lovely impression.” He yawns, becoming uncomfortably awake, but still tired. He did his business and stared at the mirror. “...... today is not your day.”

 

The bathroom mirror showed him someone with bright orange hair walking it. “.... this isn’t the right room.”

 

“Where are you looking for?”

 

“The gallery..”

 

“Next door, go up it’s stairs.”

 

They smile and he couldn’t help smiling back. “Thank you!” They walk out and soon he follows their example, leaving the bathroom and going back to the group.

 

The group consisted of Portia, Asra, Lucio, and that guy who is still sitting by Asra. His seat was taken over by his sister. “Damn it.” He takes her seat, too tired to fight over the seat. “What did I miss?”

 

“Mostly embarrassing stories of you.”

 

“Sweet. Did you tell anyone about the time my elf got yeeted by Nadia’s dragonborn?”

 

Lucio grins. “We absolutely will.”

 

He joined them in conversation this time, the light and energy helped him feel more awake and able to talk again. So he joined them in the making fun of himself and others in their group. He learned many things tonight, one, that his sister is definitely willing to make fun of him, two, that the other guy was called Valerius, and three, he never remembered to ask without cream.

 

Julian thinks for a bit, then pats Portia’s shoulder til she pays attention to him. “Pashaaaaaa. Can you drive us home?”

 

She shakes her head. “Can’t, didn’t get my license updated for here.” She sounded almost as drunk as himself.

 

“Wait, wait.” He sits up straighter and holds up a finger, as if it would help his thinking. “If I’m not driving and you’re not driving, then who’s driving?”

 

In their drunken state, the Devorak siblings found this to be the most important and brain rattling question in the world. Their more sober friends were less confused and more amused.

 

“Jules, you walked here.” Lucio watches him from over his glasses. “Do we need to get you both a ride?”

 

“Yeah, it would probably be best if we didn’t let the two drunks walk each other home.” Asra muses, poking Julian’s cheek.  “Let’s just get them a lift, most people know where he lives at this point.”

 

Lucio nods and sighs. “I’ll charge it to his card, you get someone ready to take him.”

 

Asra runs off as Lucio starts charging the ride to Julian’s card. The red head then decides to start a conversation with his sister, neither of them knowing what the conversation was or about, but getting very into it.

 

Valerius looked on and laughed. “These are some of Muriel’s friends?”

 

Lucio shrugs, putting Julian’s card into the scrub pocket. “I think he might be loosely called a friend, but I’m not sure he’s met her yet.”

 

“I see. Is this a regular occurance with them?”

 

Lucio gives another shrug. “I’ve only known her since today and he’s usually more attention grabbing the more drunk he gets.”

 

He nods, setting his empty glass down. “So that’s what I should be expecting if I come back?”

 

“If you come back when he’s here, yeah.”

 

He grins, getting up as Asra returns. “I’ll consider that then.”

 

“Hey, Valentina is ready to take them.” Asra was followed by the blond man.

 

“So they are the ones for her to take?” The man walks over to the siblings and Portia waved excitedly at him. “Lovely.”

 

“Hiiiiiii!” Portia giggles more, slowly getting to her feet. “Time for home?”

 

“Home time?” Julian followed her example and tried to get up, knocking over the chair and falling on his butt. “Owww…..”

 

“Don’t move too much.” He kneels down and helps him up. “Do you know your name?”

 

Julian thought for a bit. “I’m…… I’m Ilya.”

 

“Hello, Ilya. Take slow steps to the door and keep your arm on me.”

 

“You have beautiful eyes.” He grins, watching the man get redder. “Very beautiful, like polished amber.” Asra is helping Portia outside instead of letting her take the dance floor.

 

“You’re drunk.”

 

“And you still have pretty eyes.” He sniffs the air for a bit as they got out, then sniffed his suit. “.... you smell expensive…”

 

“...... Uh, sure.” The darkness couldn’t hide the blush with Julian this close.

 

A car pulled up and Julian focused on that, a familiar brunette stepped out of the car. “Valentina!”

 

“Drunk again?” She smiles, pushing back her black hair so that she could help him into the car. “Hey Claudius.”  


He nods at her, carefully putting the drunk red-head into the back of the car, then helped Portia in. “Yeah, I was around and need to talk to you about something.”

 

She sighs, getting them into seatbelts. “Can we talk about it later? I don’t want to talk about it with him in the car and… whoever she is.”

 

“Portia!” She giggles, looking out the window.

 

The blond, crawls into the passenger seat. “Why not? They’re drunk and probably won’t remember anything we say.”

 

“Untrue.” Val gets into her seat and points at Julian. “That fucker remembers almost everything he hears! I once mention wanting flowers for a holiday, then the next day this bastard sends me an entire bouquet! Just because he felt bad for me!”

 

“You deserve floweeeeers.” He whines from the back.

 

“....... I guess we can wait til later to talk then.” Claud glanced back at the drunk siblings, contemplating something, but shaking it off for now.

  
Julian looked out the window and let the ride pass him by as he unconsciously listened to the others in the car. _This is going to be an adventure._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I would like to thank @sassra-the-empath (the breifly mentioned redhead) and @deathmcrk (Claud and Val) for letting me use their ocs (both are on tumblr)


	4. Gather the Party

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Minor edit: updated the baker's name to match the in game one

Nadia sighed as she left the building. Working and campaigning was difficult, but it did seem to be getting results. Getting into her car and driving off, she tried to tune her worries out of her head so that she could focus on the road and get to where she needed to go.

 

Breaking Bread, an inviting little restaurant that promised delicious food and warm smiles.

 

“Ah, Nadia! It’s great to see you again!” Salasi, the restaurant’s main baker, smiled as she walked in.

 

She smiles, walking to the counter. “Hey Salisa. Business going good?” She shows him her proof of purchase.

 

“Business is getting better, started seeing some new recurring customers a few weeks ago.” He shuffles through something under the counter and sets out a few boxes that looked warm and smelled amazing. “This is more than usual, having a party?”

 

“Sort of, it’s game night, but we’re having new players joining us and one of them is having their birthday close to now.” She picks up a few of the boxes, then looks between the other ones. This might take a few trips or a very terrifying solo trip. “....”

 

He chuckles, picking up a box. “Need some help getting them out?”

 

“Yes, please.” She sighs with relief, deciding that she could really use the help. This was more food than she thought she got. Somehow adding two more people made a big difference. She’s glad that M.C. said they’d bring a cake.

 

It only took two trips and filled the back of her car. “Thank you, so much.” She smiled, handing him a tip and hopped back into the car. “Have a great day!”

 

“You too, take care kid!”

 

She rolls her eyes and drives off, good mood fading so she could focus on driving home. Just focus, don’t wander, just focus, stay in your lane. In about half an hour, she was back home and sighing with relief. She hopped out and went inside.

 

The moment she was in the door, Mercedes and Melchior were running straight for her, happy and wild. She laughs, giving them attention with pets and baby voice. “Hello! Hello, yes it’s me! I’m home! One minute, sillies!” She wanders further in and finds exactly who she’s looking for.

 

Lucio, staring at the papers on the table and typing. He glanced between the papers, the screen, and a… a set of tarot cards? She raises her eyebrows and stands next to him. “Suddenly into the Arcana now?”

 

He looks up at her and covers the cards. “Not really. I had them commissioned for a different campaign, but I’m just going to use them for this one and might reuse it later.”

 

She nods, quickly taking a peek at the computer before he shuts it. “Can you help me unload the car?” _A magic shop and starting with Asra and M.C.? Interesting._

 

He nods, pocketing the cards and putting the papers under his laptop. “Yeah.”

 

She smiles, leading him outside. “Who’d you commission them from?”

 

“Asra.” He looks at her, then frowns. “What is that look about?”

 

“What look?” She was smirking. At this point, she could tell that he had something for the artist, but she wasn’t sure that he knew he felt that way.

 

“The shit-eating smirk and overly confident about something.” He pouts and opens the car door. “.... This is a lot of food.” He grabs a few boxes and stands back so that she could grab some.

 

“Well, we are feeding more people.” She grabs some of the boxes and heads inside, followed by Lucio. “Plus M.C. is bringing a cake.”

 

“Again, this is a lot of food.” They set the boxes down and go out to grab the rest. “Seriously, I don’t think they’re going to eat it all.”

 

“We’ll send some of the leftovers with them.” She picks up a box and gets a whiff of the wonderful smell of warm pumpkin bread. “Plus, I want to see what everyone prefers so that we can plan the snacks better.”

 

“Makes sense.” He leads the way back, looking a bit angsty. “Do you remember the notes I gave you?”

 

She nods, setting down the box and pulling out her character notepad. “‘She’s been in a coma for 3 years and is missing some memories from the years before that.’” As she spoke, he seemed to relax, little by little. “‘She’s the countess and her husband was burned to death in his bedroom under mysterious circumstances. She’s been having dreams and is seeking a magician’s guidance.’ Need I go on?”

 

He grins and shakes his head. “No, I believe you.”

 

“Good. Now, let’s get set up!”

 

They got the food set out onto the table, then pushed the two couches onto each side of the table. After that, it was time to feed the dogs and Camio. Lucio decided to take care of his dogs, while Nadia decided to deal with his bird.

 

“Roll for initiative!” He squawked, bouncing up and down as she gave him food.

 

“Not yet.” Nadia rolls her eyes, filling his food and giving him new water. “Can’t do initiative when we’re not in combat.”

 

“Fuck it! Roll for initiative!” He bounced as he walked towards his food and started eating.

 

She rolled her eyes and smiled, putting away his food jar. “You need to stop listening to us play.”

 

There was a knock at the door and the cockatoo answered. “Come in! Come in! Look at Montag’s wares!”

 

Asra opened the door and walked in, followed by M.C. and a large man, presumably Muriel. Today seemed to be a less of an eye sore and more pastel, kinda. He was wearing a simple grey sweater with some text involve ‘0w0’, some purple jeans, and a light blue flower crown. “We’ve got cake!”

 

“Cake’s a lie! Cake’s a lie!” Camio bounced up and down, staring at the plastic contained that M.C. held.

 

“It’s pretty real.” They laughed, walking further in and trying to set the container on the table with the rest of the food. “Hey Dia, how’s it been?”

 

She grins, helping them find a spot. “It’s been alright, ups and downs, but I’m making progress. How’s the shop been?”

 

“Meh, we get business. I’m thinking of adding another service to the shop, but I’m not sure what or if it’d even work.” They sighed, sitting on the couch arm. “My aunt’ll probably figure it out.”

 

Nadia pats their arm and smiles. “For now, don’t worry.”

 

“Just cake and games?” They grin up at her.

 

“Cake and games.” She grins back.

 

“Nadia, this is Muriel.” Asra gestures to the large man, who shyly waves at her. “Muriel, this is Nadia, another player.”

 

She smiles and holds out her hand to him. “It’s lovely to meet you. You’re friends speak highly of you.”

 

He blushes and shakes her hand. “Hello..”

 

A door opened and closed, followed by the excited patter paws. “Noddy?”

 

“What?”

 

“Where did we put the gate?”

 

She thinks for a bit. Where did she stash the kiddy gate? “Uhh, did you check the closet?”

 

“Which one?”

 

“Upstairs, I think.”

 

There’s the sound of Lucio going upstairs and then….. “Found it!”

 

She chuckles, turning back to her guests to find Asra laying across one of the couches and his shoes were already gone, M.C. was petting something in their bag, and Muriel was nervously opening some of the boxes on the table. She glanced down and noticed a rather large, quiet husky sitting next to Muriel. They glance at her, giving her a good look at their yellow-green eyes, then turning back to watching Muriel. Their fur was colored different than almost every husky she’s ever seen, instead of a white underbelly, they have grey fur. They also had a vest on, so this must be the service dog they mentioned.

 

She looked away from the husky and sat on the couch with M.C. “Did you bring Scout with you?”

 

“Noooooo.”

 

A small boof came from the bag their arm was in.

 

“Yeeeeesss?”

 

She snorts, looking into the bag. Sure enough, the probably Glen of Imaal Terrier, Scout was in there. They looked happy.

 

“Want to have them play with the other two?”

 

They nod, then shake their head. “More pets, then play.”

 

She smiles and looks back to Muriel.

 

He calmed down a bit, holding one of Asra’s ankles captive with a small smile. “Stop it.”

 

“Nooooooo.” Asra giggled as he tried to get his foot back.

 

Nadia looks up at the second knock at the door.

 

“Montag’s wares, please come in! Come in!”

 

In came Julian and another person, who is presumably his sister. “Sorry we’re late, I got deodorant in my eye!” He nudges Asra to sit up and took his spot at the other end of the couch from Muriel and Nadia could see the damage. His right eye, which is partially covered by his bangs, was very bright red against his blue eye and pale skin. It also looks like he’s been crying and might cry more.

 

“He wouldn’t go to the doctor!” She huffed, taking a seat across from her brother.

 

“It’s not worth going back to work.”

 

“What if it gets infected?”

 

“It’s only going to irritated for maybe a day. I’ll be fine by tomorrow.” He shrugged, searching through his bag for his papers.

 

“Julian, lean down.” Asra sat up and looked at his eye. “.... You’ll be fine.”

 

“I got the Asra approval, I’m going to be fiiiiiine.” Julian jokes, slowly pulling his face back.

 

Portia gives him a look. “Says the nurse who doesn’t want to go to the hospital.”

 

He shrugs as Lucio finally comes back to the room with a baby gate and hair out of place, guess the dogs got to him. “Now is the last call for dog breaks before I close the gate.” Muriel and M.C. get up, taking their dogs for bathroom breaks.

 

“Hello, I’m Nadia.” She offers her hand to Julian’s sister.

 

“Hi, I’m Portia! She/her.” She grins, shaking her hand.

 

Nadia raises her eyebrows and smiles wider. “She/her as well. I’m going to assume that you’re Julian’s sister.”

 

She groans and nods. “Unfortunately.”

 

“I’m not that bad!” He laughs.

  
Nadia looks between them and grins. _This was going to be interesting._


	5. The Magician

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Finally getting to the actual dnd game part of this fic

Portia looked between the other players and the dm to her right. 

 

Lucio did a bit more typing, then cleared his throat. He looks between the players, then talks differently, like a narrator from a fantasy movie. How appropriate. “It’s the middle of the night, cold and dry. The city of Vesuvia is dead asleep on this beautiful moonless night, perfect for the beginning of a journey. However, not all are asleep, inside a small shop, two people are awake. One of them is about to go on a journey.” He gestures to Asra and Em See. “Would you like to introduce yourselves?”

 

Asra grins, pulling out two papers with beautiful character drawings in magical looking fantasy clothes and setting it down for everyone to see. The one he points to looks like him, but with purple eyes and white hair. “He is a fortune teller and actual magician. His napping habits are consistently inconsistent.”

 

Em points at the other one, their version had blue-green kinky hair and beautiful hazel eyes. “They are his apprentice and don’t remember shit before 3 years ago. They’re trying their best at running the shop.”

 

Portia smiles, liking their characters already.

 

He nods, eyes skimming over something. “As we join the duo in the magic shop, we witness as one of them has decided to begin a journey.”

 

“‘I’ll miss you.’” Asra spoke up, surprising Portia with how naturally he did it. “‘Here… take this. For you to play around with while I’m gone. My tarot deck.’” What surprised her more was that he pulled out an actual deck and passed it over to them.

 

“‘You think I’m ready, Master?’” They respond, mindlessly shuffling through the deck.

 

Asra blushed slightly. “‘You’re still calling me that… You know I can’t answer that for you. You’ve made incredible progress, but you still won’t let go of your doubt. Do  _ you  _ think you’re ready?’”

 

She looked at Muriel sitting at the corner between them, seeing him expressing what she felt, amazement at how easily they were getting into this, despite it being the first session. Clearly, they were becoming experts at this.

 

They smirk, holding up the cards. “‘Why don’t we ask the cards?’”

 

“‘Excellent suggestion.’” He looks over to Lucio, voice changing slightly enough to be noticed. “Do we have a room to read cards in?”

 

“You have a card reading room.”

 

“Okay, we go there.”

 

“You walk to the room shrouded by purple and red curtains with gold stars on them. To a table covered in several clothes and there is a lantern over it, casting a soft blue-green glow.”

 

“Are there chairs?”

 

“You tell me that Asra, are there chairs?”

 

He thinks for a bit, then grins, shaking his head. “It’s surrounded by pillow piles and a few stools.”

 

“There’s also a purple tinted window with diamond muntins. Is there anything else in the room?” He looks between them.

 

“Hmmmm, a skull.” They grin, still playing with the cards. “A human skull to be specific.”

 

Asra thinks for a bit and nods. “Let's have a skull.”

 

“...... You have a human skull setting on a shelf out of reach of most customers.” Lucio then grins. “It’s also barely out of reach for Asra.”

 

“Hey!” Em laughed as Asra got mock furious.

 

Lucio grins, choosing to ignore them. “So you’ve made it to the back room. What now?”

 

“I find a pile to sit on.” He mimics walking and his voice shifts again. “‘It’s been a while since we’ve practiced.’”

 

“‘Because you’re always gone?’” It was amazing how much disappointment was in their voice.

 

“‘Maybe. Someday you’ll find a  _ real  _ teacher… Well, I’m here now. Let’s see how powerful you’ve become.’”

 

“You both feel something smooth and cold brush your ankles. Roll a perception check.” Lucio leans back as they both roll. 

 

“I got a 20.” Asra grins.

 

“15.” Em looks up, excited.

 

“Burning your good rolls already? You both recognize the snake that is now traveling up Asra’s body as, drum roll.” Lucio and a few of the others drum the table. “As Faust, Asra’s familiar snake, blue scales and red eyes.”

 

Asra is bouncing in his seat, then tries to calm down slightly. “‘Oh? We’re not alone.’”

 

“Does Faust like me?” Em asks, looking between Lucio and Asra.

 

“Mmmm, roll for perception or animal handling.” Lucio shrugs.

 

They roll a die and check their sheet. “And… that’s an 11.”

 

“She seems happy to see you. You think.”

 

“....... Good enough!”

 

He snorts. “Yeah, she does. ‘If we’re all here… let’s begin.’”

 

“How are we doing this?” Em looks at Lucio for guidance. “Do you have cards selected or are we doing an actual reading?”

 

“Do a reading. It’s what you’ve been training for, after all.” He grins, leaning forward with interest.

 

They stick their tongue out at him and shuffle the cards one more time, then set three down. They flip a card, revealing what looks like a magical owl with red eyes. “The High Priestess.”

 

Portia raises her eyebrows, surprised that they knew that without the name on the card.

 

“And what is she telling you?” Asra leans forward, clearly wanting to know what they thought it said.

 

Portia and Muriel jump slightly at the sudden whispering noise. It was creepy and hard to discern what was actually being said and….. And it was coming from Lucio’s computer. Muriel pet his dog to calm down as Lucio walked around the table and to Em. He whispered and she couldn’t hear what he said, but it sounded higher pitched than his normal noise. 

 

“..... You’ve forsaken her.” They focused on Asra, looking mildly confused and as if seeking guidance.

 

Everyone blinks, the more experienced players seemed to already have their mental gears turning while Muriel wrote something down. Was this how games normally went with this group? No cute filler to slide them in, just plot heavy in the first game! This would be good.

 

“I have?” Asra looks entirely confused, but very interested in hearing more.

 

Lucio whispers more as Em keeps talking. “Yes. You’ve pushed her away, and buried her voice. She calls out to you, but you won’t listen. Master, if you don’t listen to her-”

 

They were cut off by some knocking on the bottom of the table. Wait, who did that? Portia looks around the table, half the group had at least one hand under the table and feigning innocence. She squints at all of them as Lucio walks back to his seat. 

 

“There’s someone knocking at the door. What do you two do?” Lucio taps at his computer.

 

“Asra doesn’t want to deal with customers, so he’s packing up to go.” He mimics putting on a hat. “‘Did you forget to put out the lantern again? Just as well. I can’t stay any longer.’” Then mimics adjusting his bag. “‘Well then… take care of yourself.’” He looks like he’s going to say more, then shakes his head. “‘Until we meet again.’ Then he leaves out the back and tries to sneak away.” 

 

“God damnit Asra, leaving me to deal with customers again.” Em joked, reshuffling the cards.

 

“Roll to sneak.” Lucio glances at Asra.

 

“... 18!” He grins.

 

“You sneak very good and very quietly, so you don’t get caught by the customer.”

 

“Hell yeah.”


	6. The High Priestess

“Asra, I know you want to know what’s going on with you, but we’re going to stay with M.C. for now.” Lucio says as someone continues to knock on the bottom of the table. “Because the customer is getting impatient. M., what do you do?”

Asra looks at M.C., who seemed to be contemplating their options. “Does the door have a peephole?”

“It does have a peephole.”

“I look through the peephole.”

“Roll perception.”

“It’s a… 12.”

“A mysterious figure is standing in the glow of the lantern outside. Their graceful hands are twisting together anxiously as they wait. Even in the dim light, you spy jewels glittering along their fingers. You don’t immediately recognize them.” The knocking gets more insistent.

“Well, I guess I open the door for the presumably rich person. Well, yeah, I do open the door for the graceful, rich person.”

Nadia pulls her hands out from under the table and the knocking stops. “As I come in, I unwrap my shawl. ‘Forgive me for the hour, but……I will not suffer another sleepless night. Please. You must read the cards for me.’”

“Roll wisdom, M.C.” Lucio taps at his computer.

They roll and grin. “Today is a good day. 18.”

“You now recognize the figure in front of you is the literal Countess.”

Asra snorts, watching as Nadia and Mordy start facing each other as they start to talk and getting more expressive as they get into it. It was fun to watch.

“I.. uh, well! ‘You’ve come to the right place!’”

“‘So I’m told. Your reputation precedes you. Beggars and nobles alike… The people of this city whisper your name in wonder. Though in my dream you were….. Different. No matter. I come with a proposal.’ I look around the shop, trying to get my bearings as I talk to them.” She doesn’t even wait for Lucio to tell her to roll and rolled her d20. “Uh…. that’s an… 11..”

  
Lucio snorts, but grins. “You see a quaint little shop. There’s a little counter with a glass top, showing samples of crystals, glass jars full of something, and some kind of dust-like substance. There are lit candles and a few fabrics draped on top of it. On a stool nearby, you see some kind of leafy green plant. The wall behind the counter has what looks like a cabinet built into the wall, some various items hanging on the knobs of a few of the many, many drawers in the wall. On the top shelf of the cabinet, there’s many more glass jars, an animal skull, and a few candles…” He glances at Asra and M.C. “Is there anything else there?”

Asra grins. “There’s a few tapestries and rugs that give off a slight magical feel with their design, but not much else.”

“Fabric hangs from the ceiling, connecting the lanterns together.” M.C. supplies.

Lucio nods, typing away again. “And that is what you currently see around the shop.”

“‘You mentioned a dream?’” M.C. asks Nadia, bringing them back on subject.

“‘Yes. An unwelcome ability I have come to possess. My dreams are haunted by visions of a future waiting to unfold. But the future I saw, the one that brought me to you… …is one I will not allow to pass. Tell me, magician. Will you hear my proposal?’” Nadia leans against the table, bringing a flair of nobility and power that she has perfected over the time that they’ve been playing together.

“‘What’s your proposal?’” M.C. asks, resting one arm on the table, getting very interested in all that Nadia had to tell them.

She smirks, playing it up. “‘Not very talkative, are you? Nervous, perhaps? You needn’t be. I require very little of you. Be my guest at the palace for a short while. You will be afforded every luxury, of course. It is as my dreams foretold. I ask only that you bring your skill… and the arcana.’”

They’re silent for a bit, probably deciding what will further the plot. “‘I am at your service, Countess.’”  
Nadia and Lucio both smile, making Asra worried about what Lucio has planned for the campaign. Was it another traitor based game? He did seem to like those the most. All the drama as each of the players tried to figure out who was trying to betray the other characters.

This was going to be interesting.

“‘You have chosen wisely, magician. I will alert the guard to expect you tomorrow. But before that… I want to see these talents of yours for myself. Shall we do a reading?’”

“I usher her to the back room.” M.C. makes vague ‘move move’ motions with their hands.

“The two of you go to the back room, sitting across from each other with the cards on the table between you.” Lucio says, clicking on something. “What do you do?”

“I look around the room.” Nadia rolls her dice then frowns. “.... 8.”

Lucio grins. “It’s room with many tapestries and fabrics spread about the room. You don’t notice the skull they have, probably because you sat down as you got into the room.”

She chuckles and shakes her head. “Probably for the best that she doesn’t see a human skull.” She stops laughing for a bit, bringing back the aura of nobility. “I gesture to the cards and say, ‘Go on.’”

M.C. shuffles the cards again, then pulls one off the top and sets it down.

Asra smiles. It was his favorite card in the whole deck, the Magician. An orange fox with magenta-purple eyes, in a white outfit with light purple and gold shirt collar, and covered their shoulders with a purple-red cloak. Each of the corners held different items of the minor arcana and behind them was blue flames, along with a flame texture resting above it to make it give the illusion that they’re surrounded by the flames. He really liked it.

“‘... The Magician.’” They look up as Lucio starts the whispering noises again and walks over to them, again.

“‘How very appropriate.’” Nadia looks over the card. “‘And what does he hold for me?’”

Lucio whispers in their ear.

“‘You have a plan.’” They say.

“‘Go on….’” She leans forward, needing the answer.

They think about how to word what to say as Lucio keeps whispering in their ear. “‘One that’s long in the making. Years upon years. Now, you seek to set it in motion.’”

“‘And? Should I move?’”

“‘Yes. Act now. Everything has fallen into place.’”

“‘Say no more.’ Then she gets up and leaves the room.”

“I follow after her a few seconds after, surprised that she’s leaving so suddenly.” M.C. laughs.

“She’s putting on her shawl back on. ‘Your fortunes are simple. Much the same as others I’ve heard. And yet… you are the first to pique my interest.’”

“Rude.” They laugh. “I’m not like other fortune tellers.” Almost everyone laughs at their joke.

Nadia tries to get back to the moment, but keeps getting interrupted by the others giving small quips of their own and her own laughter. When she manages to control her breathing and the others going quiet. “‘Ahem.’ She’s standing by the door.”

M.C. didn’t seem to immediately understand what Nadia was getting at, still winding down from the jokes. “Uhhh.. what?”

“She’s standing by the door. She wants to see if you’ll open the door for her or not.” She restates and elaborates.

“.. oh!” They chuckle and rub the back of their head. “Yeah, I’ll open it.”

“‘Until tomorrow, then. Pleasant dreams.’ Then she leaves, walking into the night and using the darkness to disappear like a badass.”

Lucio looks at her. “Roll for performance?”

She rolls and grins, tapping at the table in what appeared to be her trying to restrain her excitement. “17!” Everyone cheered for her.

He laughs. “You disappear into the mist, which is acting like something out of Silent Hill in its thickness.”

Asra noticed M.C. write something down. ‘Did Nadia confuse me for Asra???’ He noticed Lucio pass Julian a note, but couldn’t read what was written on it.

“So M.C., what are you doing?” Lucio asks, a mischievous glint in his eye.

They seem to pick up on that he had something planned. “....... standing in the shop, questioning my interaction with the countess.”

Julian spoke up, mouth covered and talking like he was trying to be intimidating. “‘Strange hours for a shop to keep.’”

“They immediately look around the shop.”

He was obviously smiling behind his hands. “‘Behind you.’”

“I turn to the voice.” They announce.

“You are staring at what is essentially a plague doctor, complete with an intimidating white mask with red glass eyes and a dark cape, looming against the door.” Lucio says, nodding towards Julian.

He was grinning. “‘Now, sources say this is the witch’s lair. So who might you be?’”

“I attempt escape!” M.C.’s already rolling.

“‘Up up up. Not so fast.’”

“M.C., roll for dexterity. Julian, roll to contest it.” Lucio grins.

“I got a 9.” Julian sighs.

M.C. looks up looking amused, yet disappointed. “... I got a 4.”

“Oh my god!” Everyone laughs, in different stages of disbelief.

“So..” Lucio laughs, trying to get his words out. “So Julian, you watch as the stranger tries to dart out of the building, but you grab their wrist and pull them against your body in an attempt to keep them from running.”

“‘Tell me where he is and I’ll let you go.’”

“I wish to struggle again!” They roll again as Julian does the same. “13!”

“.......” He laughs and rubs his face. “I got 7.”

“I throw my head back and hit him in the face before running away.” They laugh.

“While escaping, you managed to knock his mask off. Are you running anywhere in particular?” Lucio asks, trying to look innocent.

“.... No, not really.”

He grins wider. “So you run into the backroom-”

“God dammit!” They groan, while the others laugh. “I should have chosen a room..”

“I run after them and try to catch them again.” He’s rolling his dice again and they respond in kind.

“Since y’all are running, use dexterity.” Lucio smiles, leaning back.

“3..”

They sounded like they were going to sob through their laughter. “I critted!”

“Are you serious?!” Julian stands up and looks at their dice while, they start laughing harder.

Nadia leans over, laughing as they nodded. “That is a one. First one of the game.”

“Your puns aren’t helping!” They laugh, sliding down in their seat.

“So, MC runs into the back room and gets caught by the intruder by the scruff of their clothes.” Lucio says through his laughter.

“‘You’re a slippery one.’” Julian giggles.

“I look back and try to struggle away.”

Lucio clicks something. “You see his face and I want you to make a wisdom roll.”

“That is a.. Seriously?!” They groaned and laughed. “That’s a 15.”

“You recognize him.”

“I do?”

“Yes.”

There was a soft ding and they looked at their phone. They mock gasp. “I do.”

“‘Oh, you recognize me? Then you know the trouble you’re in.’” Julian grins.

“‘Doctor Jules?’”

“‘Haven’t heard that name in years. Quickly now. Where is the witch?’”

MC raises their hands. “‘I’ll talk!’”

“‘Go on.’” Julian leans forward, staring at them.

“‘Master Asra is gone.’”

Julian has an unimpressed look, truly putting his drama lessons to use. “‘Obviously. Where to?’”

“‘I wish I knew. He’s gone on another journey. He didn’t tell me where.’”

“‘I see. Well, if you don’t know, and I don’t know… Why don’t we ask your magic cards?’” Julian looks around, as if assessing the room. “‘This is where you do your fortune telling, isn’t it?’ I sit down in a chair and try to look fearsome. ‘Go on. Don’t be shy.’”

“I sit down.” M.C. shuffles and draws a card. “......... Death.”

Lucio didn’t get up to tell them anything, instead playing the audio of what sounds like blood pounding. Maybe a heart beat?

“‘Death? Death?’” It was hard to tell if Julian was still in character, until he gave a bitter, icy laugh. He was still in character. “‘You’ve got to be joking. Death cast her gaze on this wretch and turned away. She has no interest in an abomination like me.’ Then he hits the table and leaves the room.”

Lucio stops the noise and raises his eyebrow at him, obviously curious.

“I guess I follow after him, at least to make sure he’s not breaking my shop.” They shrug, putting the cards back together.

“‘You’ve been hospitable, so I’ll let you in on a secret. Your witch friend will be back for you. He’s taught you his tricks. You may even say that he cares for you. But when he returns…’ Then I put the mask back on. ‘Seek me out. For your own sake. That creature is far more dangerous than you know. Well then. The hour is late. Don’t let him fool you, shopkeep.’ Then I dramatically close the door and leave.”

“Roll for closing the door.”

“That’s, uh, 11.” He looks to Lucio.

“So you try to do the cool closing of the door, probably trying to make it look like you weren’t there and that maybe they had imagined it all, but the door slams as you disappear into the early morning fog.”

“That works for me.” Julian laughs, earning some giggles from the others.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was late because summer, adhd, and I got into Stardew Valley   
> I cannot guarantee a consistent schedule


End file.
